UNIT-I

The nature scope methods of educational psychology. Experimental, clinical, differential,

case study and genetic methods observation and introspection
MEANING, NATURE AND SCOPE OF EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
What is Psychology?
The word, Psychology is derived from two Greek words, Psyche and Logos. Psyche
means soul and Logos means science. Thus psychology was first defined as the science of
soul.
- According to earlier psychologists, the function of psychology was to study the nature, origin and
destiny of the human soul. But soul is something metaphysical. It cannot be seen, observed and
touched and we cannot make scientific experiments on soul.
In the 18th century, psychology was understood as the Science of Mind. William James
(1892) defined psychology as the science of mental processes. But the word mind is also quite
ambiguous

as

there

was

confusion

regarding

the

nature

and

functions

of

mind.

Modern psychologists defined psychology as the Science of Consciousness. James Sully (1884)
defined psychology as the Science of the Inner World. Wilhelm Wundt (1892) defined psychology as
the science which studies the internal experiences. But there are three levels of consciousness
conscious, subconscious and the unconscious and so this definition also was not accepted by some.
(Thus psychology first lost its soul, then its mind and then its consciousness).
At present only its behaviour exists. William McDugall (1905) defined psychology as the
Science of Behaviour, W.B. Pillsbury (1911) and J.B. Watson (1912) also defined psychology as the
science of behaviour.
Behaviour generally means overt activities which can be observed and measured scientifically.
But ones behaviour is always influenced by his experiences. So when we study ones behaviour we
must also study his experiences. Psychology should, therefore, be defined as a science of behaviour
and experiences on human beings (B.F.Skinner).
According to Crow and Crow, Psychology is the study of human behaviour and human
relationship.
What is Educational Psychology?

Educational psychology is that branch of psychology in which the findings of psychology are
applied in the field of education. It is the scientific study of human behaviour in educational setting.
- According to Charles. E. Skinner, Educational psychology deals with the behaviour of human beings
in educational situations.

- Thus educational psychology is a behavioural science with two main references

human behaviour and education. In the words of E.A. Peel, Educational Psychology is the science
of Education.
- Education by all means is an attempt to mould and shape the behaviour of the pupil. It aims to
produce desirable changes in him for the all-round development of his personality.
- The essential knowledge and skill to do this job satisfactorily is supplied by Educational Psychology.
In the words of E.A. Peel, Educational psychology helps the teacher to understand the development of
his pupils, the range and limits of their capacities, the processes by which they learn and their social
relationships.
- (In this way, the work of the Educational Psychologists resembles with that of an Engineer, who is a
technical expert. The Engineer supplies all the knowledge and skill essential for the accomplishment of
the job satisfactorily for example, construction of a bridge.). In the same way Educational
Psychologists, who is a technical expert in the field of Education, supplies all the information, principles
and techniques essential for:
Understanding the behaviour of the pupil in response to educational environment and desired
modification of his behaviour to bring an all-round development of his personality.
- In this way, it is quite reasonable to call Educational Psychology as a science and technology
of Education.
- Thus, Educational Psychology concerned primarily with understanding the processes of teaching and
learning that take place within formal environments and developing ways of improving those methods. It
covers important topics like learning theories; teaching methods; motivation; cognitive, emotional, and
moral development; and parent-child relationships etc.
- In short, it is the scientific discipline that addresses the questions: Why do some students learn more
than others? and What can be done to improve that learning?
NATURE OF EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
- Its nature is scientific as it has been accepted that it is a Science of Education. We can summarize the
nature of Educational Psychology in the following ways:
1. Educational Psychology is a science. (Science is a branch of study concerned with observation of
facts and establishment of verifiable general laws. Science employs certain objective methods for the
collection of data. It has its objectives of understanding, explaining, predicting and control of facts.) Like
any other science, educational psychology has also developed objective methods of collection of data.
It also aims at understanding, predicting and controlling human behaviour.
2. Educational Psychology is a natural science. An educational psychologist conducts his
investigations, gathers his data and reaches his conclusions in exactly the same manner as physicist or

the biologist.
3. Educational psychology is a social science. Like the sociologist, anthropologist, economist or
political scientist, the educational psychologist studies human beings and their sociability.
4. Educational psychology is a positive science. Normative science like Logic or Ethics deals with
facts as they ought to be. A positive science deals with facts as they are or as they operate.
Educational psychology studies the childs behaviour as it is, not, as it ought to be. So it is a positive
science.
5. Educational psychology is an applied science. It is the application of psychological principles in
the field of education. By applying the principles and techniques of psychology, it tries to study the
behaviour and experiences of the pupils. As a branch of psychology it is parallel to any other applied
psychology. For example, educational psychology draws heavily facts from such areas as
developmental psychology, clinical psychology, abnormal psychology and social psychology.
6. Educational psychology is a developing or growing science. It is concerned with new and ever
new researches. As research findings accumulate, educational psychologists get better insight into the
childs nature and behaviour.
W.A. Kelly (1941) listed the nature of Educational Psychology as follows:
i. To give a knowledge of the nature of the child
ii. To give understanding of the nature, aims and purposes of education
iii. To give understanding of the scientific methods and procedures which have been used in arriving at
the facts and principles of educational psychology
iv. To present the principles and techniques of learning and teaching
v. To give training in methods of measuring abilities and achievement in school subjects
vi. To give a knowledge of the growth and development of children
vii. To assist in the better adjustment of children and to help them to prevent maladjustment
viii. To study the educational significance and control of emotions and
ix. To give an understanding of the principles and techniques of correct training.
- Thus, educational psychology is an applied, positive, social, specific and practical science. While
general science deals with behaviour of the individuals in various spheres, educational psychology
studies the behaviour of the individual in educational sphere only.
SCOPE OF EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
The scope of educational psychology is ever-growing due to constantly researches in this field.
The following factors will indicate the scope of educational psychology:
1. The Learner. The subject-matter of educational psychology is knitted around the learner. Therefore,
the need of knowing the learner and the techniques of knowing him well. The topics include the innate

abilities and capacities of the individuals, individual differences and their measurements, the overt,
covert, conscious as well as unconscious behaviour of the learner, the characteristics of his growth and
development and each stage beginning from childhood to adulthood.
2. The Learning Experiences. Educational Psychology helps in deciding what learning experiences
are desirable, at what stage of the growth and development of the learner, so that these experiences
can be acquired with a greater ease and satisfaction.
3. Learning process: After knowing the learner and deciding what learning experiences are to be
provided, Educational Psychology moves on to the laws, principles and theories of learning. Other
items in the learning process are remembering and forgetting, perceiving, concept formation, thinking
and reasoning, problem solving, transfer of learning, ways and means of effective learning etc.
4. Learning Situation or Environment. Here we deal with the environmental factors and learning
situations which come midway between the learner and the teacher. Topics like classroom climate and
group dynamics, techniques and aids that facilitate learning and evaluation, techniques and practices,
guidance and counselling etc. for the smooth functioning of the teaching-learning process.
5. The Teacher: The teacher is a potent force is any scheme of teaching and learning process. It
discusses the role of the teacher. It emphasizes the need of knowing thyself for a teacher to play his
role properly in the process of education. It throws light on the essential personality traits, interests,
aptitudes, the characteristics of effective teaching etc., so as to inspire him for becoming a successful
teacher.
Though the entire scope of Educational Psychology is included in the above mentioned five key-factors,
it may be further expanded by adding the following:
6. It studies Human Behaviour in educational situations. Psychology is the study of behaviour, and
education deals with the modification of behaviour; hence, educational psychology pervades the whole
field of education.
7. It studies the Growth and Development of the child. How a child passes through the various stages
of growth and what are the characteristics of each stage are included in the study of educational
psychology.
8. To what extent Heredity and Environment contribute towards the growth of the individual, and how
this knowledge can be made use of for bringing about the optimum development of the child; form a
salient feature of the scope of educational psychology.
9. Educational psychology deals with the Nature and Development of the Personality of an
individual. In fact, education has been defined as the all-round development of the personality of an
individual; personality development also implies a well-adjusted personality.
10. It studies Individual Difference: Every individual differs from every other individual. It is one of the

fundamental facts of human nature which have been brought to light by educational psychology. This
one fact has revolutionalised the concept and process of education.
11. It studies the nature Intelligence and its Measurement. This is of utmost importance for a teacher.
12. It Provides Guidance and Counselling: Education is nothing but providing guidance to the growing
child.
We can conclude by saying that Educational Psychology is narrower in scope than general
psychology. While general psychology deals with the behaviour of the individual in a general way,
educational psychology in concerned with the behaviour of the learner in an educational setting.
Introspection Method
This is the oldest method of educational psychology. The word introspection has been derived
from two Latin words, intro meaning withing and spiere meaning to look. Therefore introspection
implies self observation, or in other words, to experience ones own mental state i.e., to observe,
analyze and report ones own feelings. Now let us turn to two psychologists James and Stout to know
what they have said about psychological method in education.
According to William James, Introspective observation is what we have to rely on first and
foremost and always. The word intro-spection needs hardly to be defined - it means, of course,
looking into our own minds and recording what we there discover. Everyone agrees that through
this method one can discover ones own states of consciousness. So far as I know, the existence
of such states has never been doubted by any critic, however skeptical in other respects he may
have been.
According to Stout, In introspection we are concerned with the nature of experience itself and
with the laws of mental process. The observer in introspection is directed towards the answering
of questions of theoretical importance for the advancement of our systematic knowledge of the
laws and conditions of mental process. Introspection examines inner behaviour of an individual
and an individual knows about his own feelings or thoughts in a particular situation.
The Introspection method has both merits and demerits.
Merits of Introspection Method: The merits of the introspection method are given below:Introspection is the easiest of all methods of educational psychology.
It does not need any tool or laboratory as the subject and the investigator is the same.
It is the most economical method and one which enables us to know about the mental state of an

individual, i.e. his emotions and feelings.

Introspection, as a method, has generated a lot of research and is used in almost all
experimental students.
Drawbacks of Introspection Method: The drawbacks of the introspection method are given
below:Introspection means looking into-ones own emotions and feelings, so when one attempts to
study ones mental state, it disappears and therefore it is different to introspect the changing
psychological experiences.
As the subject and investigator is same the introspection becomes subjective and biased and
therefore the data may not be reliable and valid. The person may not consider certain facts.
The introspection method cannot be done by abnormal individuals and children.
A person should be highly trained and skilled to introspect properly.
According to Kant, a famous scholar, it is not possible to accept conscious experience as the
subject matter of psychology and then consider introspection as its proper method.

Introspection is the oldest method of educational psychology.

Introspection means self observation, i.e. to look into ones own mental state.

Introspection means examining the inner behaviour of an individual by oneself.

Introspection is the easiest and most economical of all methods of educational psychology.

In this method the individual is both the subject and the observer.

Introspection has generated a lot of research in experimental studies.

The data collected through the introspection method may not be reliable as an individuals mental state
is changeable.

The introspection method cannot be done by abnormal people and children

While introspecting an individual may hide certain facts of his mental state and therefore the obtained
data may not be valid.
Observation Method
It is one of the oldest and most popular methods of educational psychology. It has replaced the
method of introspection of self-observation. The observation method is also called objective
observation. According to John Dollard, The primary research instrument would seem to be the

observing human intelligence trying to make sense out of human experience. Observation is one of the
basic methods which mean that an individuals behaviour (i.e. a persons bodily gestures, facial
expression and other bodily actions) is observed. It is accepted by psychologists that an individuals
overt behaviour is the result of his internal mental conditions. The observer makes systematic
observation through recording in a natural situation. Observation can be both natural and
participant. In natural observation the experimenter observes and records the behaviour of the
subjects in the natural setting as has been mentioned above; here the subjects are not conscious about
their behaviour being observed. In participant observation, the observer becomes a member of the
group, gains the confidence of the other group members by building rapport with them, and observes
their behaviour. Here also the subjects are not conscious that their behaviour is being observed.
Certain principles should be followed in the observation method. They are:
Observation should be made not only of the individuals behaviour but of the whole situation.
Proper planning of the observation process should be made; objectives must be clear and the
proper tools for recording must be kept properly.
Observer must select the appropriate number of subjects to be observed. Too many will be
difficult to manage.
The time limit of observation must also be fixed. Too long time may make the observer distracted
and tired and if it is too short it will not yield the proper information.
As observation is a systematic process, the observer must have the proper skills and aptitude
and the ability to report accurately. Only then will the data be reliable.
Advantages of the observation method: The observation method has certain advantages
such as :
It is observation of behaviour in natural setting.
It is objective and therefore more reliable.
It is applicable for all age groups.
Observation can be done through simple tools as well as sophisticated ones like camera, tape
recorder video recorder etc.
Observation can be made in any situation of our day to day life.

Limitations of the Observation method: The limitations of the observation method are as
follows:Data can be collected only about observable behaviour or overt behaviour. Therefore, it can be
unreliable at times as the subjects mental behaviour can be different.
Personal prejudices, or in other words, subjectivity on the part of the observer can be a big
drawback of this method. The observers own interests, values may affect the interpretation of the
data to a great extent.
The behaviour of the subjects may be affected by the time and place. Their behaviour may be
different at different times under the same circumstances.
Sometimes the observation method lacks precision, as different observers tend to interpret the
data in different ways. Therefore if the data collected are expressed in quantitative measures
then they can be interpreted by statistical methods.
The observation method fails to establish a cause-effect relationship between the subjects
behaviour and their surroundings. For examples delinquency may not always be caused by
poverty, sometimes sound economic position of the subject can cause delinquent behaviour.
Therefore it becomes difficult to draw conclusions that a particular situation can induce certain
kind of behaviour in an individual.

Experimental Method
It is one of the most important and objective methods of psychology, as it is very scientific. It is
precise, planned, systematic, or in other words, it is observation under controlled conditions. According
to J.W Best, Experimental research is the description and analysis of what will be, or what will occur,
under carefully controlled conditions. In experiments, there is always the attempt to establish certain
cause and effect relationships through carefully planned and controlled observation of the subjects
behaviour. The experimental methods has certain characteristics. They areIn the experimental method the conditions are always controlled.
It essentially requires at least two persons, the experimenter and the subject.
Usually the experimental method is applied on persons in a random order.
In the experimental method two different types of variables are used (a) Independent variable
like intelligence and (b) dependent variable like home or school environment, other socioeconomic conditions etc.

Merits of Experimental Method : The experimental method has the following merits :
It is the most systematic method and the conditions can be completely controlled.
The data collected can be analysed in an objective manner and so it is reliable.
A cause-effect relationship of individuals behaviour can be established.
Hypothesis can be formulated and the result of the experiment can be tested keeping this in
consideration.
It discards subjective viewpoints.
It increases the scope for further research as the result of the experimental method can be
precisely recorded.
Drawbacks of the Experimental Method
The drawbacks of the experimental method are As human behaviour is changeable, identical behaviour of the same individual not occur even
under identical conditions at different times.
Mostly experiments have been conducted on animals like cats, dogs and rats and the principles
arrived at on the basis of such tests may not explain human beings.
It is often difficult to conduct experiments in social sciences unlike physical sciences.
The experimental method is costly and time consuming.
The experimenter must have specialized skills to conduct experiments.
The tools used in experiments may not be satisfactory and therefore the obtained data may not
be reliable.
The experimental method can produce results of probability and not certainly.
The Case Study Method
The Case Study method deals with the emotional and mental state of an individual. This
method is applied to study special behavioural problems of an individual by specially trained teachers,
psychologist and psychiatrists. Through this method total information of family background, schooling
and also social conditions of the individuals is obtained; hence it can be called a cumulative record
which is of great help in understanding the source of an individuals fears, anxiety, worry, or any kind of
maladjustment. The main objective of this method is to help the individual adjust better with the

environment and gain self confidence to attain higher levels of achievement. Different steps may be
used in the case study method- some of them are mentioned below:Basic preliminary information about the subjects name, age, sex, parents age, education,
occupation as well as social status.
Proper physical check-up of the individual is done to ascertain whether his/her behavioural
problem is due to any disease. Only in the absence of any physical ailment can psychological
treatment start.
The subject should be very comfortable with the investigator while the latter takes the
information. The investigator (teacher or psychologist) should be friendly and the language of
collecting data must be simple so that free and frank responses can be available.
The investigator must not tire the subject; instead, regular intervals of rest should be given. The
method cannot be applied hastily - it may go on for several weeks or months.
The behaviour of the individual should be observed in natural setting and working conditions.
Doing so will provide correct data which ultimately in most cases, will lead to proper
understanding of the root cause of the persons problems.
Special care must be taken in the post treatment period so that there is no recurrence of the
problem. The parents and family members and other associates must take care so that the
subject can modify his behaviour and prevent maladjustment.
Method of Treatment : Treatment methods of maladjusted individuals include the following :Efforts must be made to modify the environmental factors so that the individual can adapt better.
If the existing environment cannot be modified then the individual should be physically placed in a
different environment which is more congenial for his development.
Proper guidance and counselling should be provided to the individual.
Different types of therapies should be applied like play therapy, group therapy, psychotherapy
etc. by experts.
Case study method provides details about the individuals behaviour, an in-depth study about the
root cause of the behavioural problems, and help to provide guidance to modify the behaviour of
the subject.
Limitation of the Cast-study Method : The case- study also has certain limitations. They are :
The investigator should be technically proficient to handle a case. In most cases, however, the
investigators are not found to be experts in this field.
Sometimes the information may become highly subjective. The subject, parents and other
associates may hide certain facts about the subjects behavioural problems and so the data

collected may not be reliable and valid.

There is a possibility of the investigator of becoming involved with the problems of the individual
and therefore his diagnosis and counselling or other methods of treatment may not be effective.
he possibility of errors in understanding the problems as well as treatment is high; therefore utmost
care must be taken to minimize the errors.
Clinical Method
This method is primarily used to collect detailed information on the behaviour problems of
maladjusted and deviant cases. The main objective of this method is to study individual case or
cases of group to detect and diagnose their specific problems and to suggest therapeutic
measures to rehabilitate them in their environment.
It involves the following steps;
1. Interview
2. Information gathering
3. A hypothesis formulation,
4. Diagnoses are made,
5. Planned a treatment programme

Differential method
The differential method is based on individual differences. Therefore, all the measures applied
to the calculation of individual differences are included in this method- The differential method is also
named as the normative survey method or the field survey method as the investigator has to go to the
field to make his investigations. It is sometimes called the statistical method for the reason that
statistical techniques become the major devices for the study of the individual differences. Now, the
question that arises is, how do differential methods differ from experimental methods?
It may be felt that the difference between the experimental and differential methods is only
arbitrary and artificial, since the procedure of finding the effects on dependent variables by the
application of the independent variables is the same. This however is not true as T.G. Andrews (1958)
comments: Differentiation between experiments and differential methods may appear quite artificial,
and it is true that all psychologists will not agree to such an apparently artificial classification scheme.
Nevertheless it should always be made clear that the independent variables resulting from
individual differences are never under the investigator's control to the same degree that experimental
variables are.
Thus, differential methods differ from the experimental approach in that the investigator cannot
intentionally manipulate the variables and each of these is studied as an independent variable. For

instance, in studying the relationship of achievement with intelligence it is not possible to manipulate
intelligence.
Therefore, we have to take each individual and study his achievement in relation to his
intelligence. After that, we can try to achieve at certain conclusions with the help of statistical
techniques.
The key concept in using the differential methods is their technique of studying differences
within the same individual or between individuals in different groups. Usually for this purpose four types
of main approaches or designs are used.
Genetic Method
The above mentioned methods provide psychology with its data. But the supply of data is not
enough and the explanation is also necessary. The genetic method is an explanatory method of
psychology bringing out the genesis and development of a mental process. So it may also be called a
developmental method. Mental processes are the results of a long course of evolution. So the question
of vital interest is what are the development stages of the mind from its earliest to the present stage?
The genetic method seeks to answer this question.
The genetic method bears a close relation to the analytical method, for it aims at studying the
gradual development of the adult mind by its analysis. The method is specially applicable to child
psychology. It investigates the development and growth of the child mind. This method throws light on
the dynamic nature of the mind. It treats mind from the evolutionary point of view. Therefore it is
modern in its scientific outlook.